In With the New
by b-mystique
Summary: "As you may be aware, I brought you here to discuss the up and coming season. We kick off in a few days and I want to make sure you're all aware of the changes in store," SECOND CHAPTER SEASON 7
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Be kind. I did it in a half hour.: ) Apparently I can't use a certain name so I took a creative approach : ) I mean I could have been talking about Chef Ramsay *g*Oh and I don't have a beta so errors are my own : )

**Disclaimer**: don't own 'em.

~o~

Dave Rossi staggered into the conference room and plopped down in the nearest seat available before facing the head of the table.

"Nice to see you actually made it Dave," Erin Strauss quipped from the seat across from him.

"Good morning to you too Erin," he shot back with a smug expression.

"Alright, enough of the niceties here, you two." The balding, plump man sitting at the head of the table heaved a sigh before continuing. "As you may be aware, I brought you here to discuss the up and coming season. We kick off in a few days and I want to make sure you're all aware of the changes in store," He leaned back in his chair with a menacing smirk and adjusted his diamond encrusted cuff-links.

"I'm sorry, changes?"Hotch inquired from his seat between Emily and J.J. "What exactly do you mean by 'changes'?" He continued as he casually refilled J.J's coffee mug for the sixth time that morning.

"No one mentioned anything about changes before," Morgan's voice floated throughout the room from his seat beside Erin and Garcia.

Mr. Asole studiously ignored the questions and passed the scripts around the table before leaning back in his chair and clasping his fingers over his extended belly.

"Oh come on, what the hell is this?" Erin Strauss' voice boomed from her seat. "You can't seriously have me kicking a puppy in the premiere! Why do I always have to come across as a...as a.."

"Bitch?" Rossi offered from his seat, not looking up from the script before him.

"Y-yes, exactly. Thank you for that." She nodded in Rossi's direction in a sign of thanks and he responded with a nonchalant flick of his hand. "A bitch. Why must I constantly come across as a bitch? I thought I was making some improvements?"

Asole rolled his eyes and sighed before responding. "Look Emma-"

"Erin!" She corrected, her chin raised in a dignified manner.

"Whatever.." he continued. "People like to have an antagonist, someone to hate, someone to truly loathe in things like this. You just happen to be that person, so toughen up tootsie!"

Erin's eyes blinked rapidly as she held her hand to her throat in dismay. "It's a show about serial killers. _They're_ the ones to despise..._they're_ the antagonists! I just don't understand why it has to be me! I'm actually a very lovely person!"

"She really is." Rossi agreed, smiling a tad when as he watched Erin's face flush at the compliment.

"Fine, whatever, she won't kick the dog, but she's still our resident bitch." Asole glanced at his platinum Rolex before continuing. "Alright, so on with the discussion of the changes.."

"Umm, excuse me but where's my script?" JJ asked as she sipped on her coffee.

"You can share min...Why is my script so short?" Emily sifted through her script rapidly before meeting Asole's eyes.

"Ahh, I'm glad you two brought that up. So our big changes here...JJ, you're out. Emily, you're getting cut back. Now-"

"Wait what?" Morgan's voice boomed from his seat, his dark brow furrowed.

"What are you talking about? I don't approve of this." Hotch's voice was acidic as his dark brooding eyes penetrated those of the man before him.

"Look, it is what it is folks. Prentiss, quite frankly you spazzed out a great deal last season and perhaps a little break will do you some good, at least until we find a way to explain you're inexplicable change in character." Emily opened her mouth to speak but Asole continued. "JJ, you had a nice run, but let's face it, you're a liaison, as in you aren't meant to stick around for long. I don't know what more we can do for you."

"Creative? You're giving me the creative excuse? you don't know what more you can do for me? You haven't _done_ anything for me! There's still stuff to do!" She rose from her seat and leaned across the table, blue eyes darkening with fury. She tugged away from the reassuring pat that Hotch attempted to give her.

"Yeah, creative, sure! That's a load, more like financial!" Emily hissed sarcastically.

"If finances are the issue than maybe King Midas over there can cut back on his own expenses!" Morgan growled through his teeth, his annoyance rising as Asole played with his I-phone.

"No, It's creative for JJ, financial for you Prentiss" Asole smirked at her as he picked lint off his Armani suit.

"I was just starting to develop!I was just getting some background! I had a lot going for me!"

"Look gorgeous, you got a bit of storyline. We gave you what we could, but at this point we've run out of things other than you being eye candy ya' know? I mean, and even that has run it's course, your clothes can't get any tighter and we've upped the ante on the makeup, but we just can't get the creative juices going for you. But we can give you a farewell. We'll think of something good, maybe you run off to get married to that Southern fella and raise that little kid of yours, or maybe you get transferred, you didn't think you'd be at the B.A.U forever did ya?" He winked at her ignoring the growling coming from Morgan and the hissing coming from Prentiss.

"I...I've been here for years! I'm essential to this team!Irreplaceable! How can you just discard me like I'm...like I'm..."

"Me?" A soft voice came from the back of the room. The others turned to face the lone chair in the back, their curiosity peaked as for the first time they noticed the slender leg draped across the arm of the chair. The chair turned slowly and Elle leaned back further into it continuing on in a bored tone. "You and I didn't always get along Jayje but did you really think you weren't just as expendable as anyone?"

"Elle?" Morgan exclaimed in surprise.

"In the flesh Der" she replied, waving her hands over her body for emphasis. She turned back to face a distraught JJ. "Look sweetheart, hate to break it to ya, but you aren't special! None of you are. Well.." Her eyes flickered over to Hotch and Rossi briefly. "Look, it's okay. They'll just replace you with a new girl and all's well that ends well! You'll be fine, it's not like people will forget that you ever existed or...like your replacement better than they liked you or anything like that," she finished while staring pointedly at a squirming Prentiss.

"I'm not being replaced am I?" JJ turned to face Asole once more.

"We don't like the term 'replaced'. We are bringing in a new girl." he shrugged and checked his watch again.

"I don't understand! Why would a new girl be needed if it's my job that you don't need anymore?" She grunted in frustration when he refused to answer.

"Mr. Asole?" She questioned again.

"Look , we'll give you something nice, that says something!"

"Yeah like they gave me something 'nice'." Elle muttered. "I mean really, they had me go postal and kill a rapist. I worked in the Sex Offense unit for nearly a decade before joining the BAU, so why would I go postal on a rapist after catching the bastards for so many years?" She continued to mutter out loud.

"I can't lose my chickadees!" Garcia shrieked from her place beside Morgan. "And what have you done to my Reid? I haven't seen him yet! you haven't gotten rid of him too have you!"The others looked around frantically, finally noticing that Reid was not in the meeting with them.

Elle snorted from her seat."No worries, they only voluntarily get rid of the women. They never know what to do with us. I'm sure boy wonder, of all people, will be just fine. He has the right 'equipment' " She rolled her eyes and picked at her cuticles.

"Yes,well, if you all can settle down we'll get to the rest of the changes and your coworker," Asole sighed.

"There are more changes?" Rossi grumbled. "Unbelievable."

"Yes, well-" Asole was interrupted by Reid's entrance. He walked swiftly past his awestruck colleagues and plopped down in his seat. He continued to mutter to himself as he poured half a canister of sugar into his coffee.

"Dr. Reid, I trust you've heard the extent of our meeting through the conference call on your way here?"

"Yes sir, though I would recommend you give advance notice for any further meetings seeing as it does in fact take me an immeasurable amount of time to weasel my way through the swarm of fangirls outside of my apartment. It really sets my commute time back given the statistics-"

"I'll take it into consideration ," he interrupted with annoyance.

"You look different." Emily wondered out loud. "Why does he look different?" She shot an accusatory glance at the plump man awaiting an answer.

"Another change. Reid will look more suave this season. It's been decided that his social awkwardness and his geek look needs to be a bit more chic."

"Chic! CHIC? He looks like he stepped out of a frickin G.Q magazine! That isn't how he's supposed to look!" Emily argued.

"I'm in concurrence with Emily about my new...look," Reid exhaled blowing his freshly styled sandy locks out of his eyes in the process. "I resent the potential message being sent to younger viewers, that somehow I have to change in order to be more likeable or relatable. It isn't like I was a model in a past life, I don't need to be particularly chic!Walking through the bullpen as if I'm strutting down a runway wearing Calvin Cane-"

"Calvin Klein," Garcia corrected quietly.

"Calvin Klein! My style...it's part of what sets me apart from the others, part of what makes me individual, eccentric!Changing my image completely detracts from what I offer to the team intellectually, and quite honestly I can't afford any more tweenies with stalker like tendencies after me," he added with a whisper.

"They always start with a mini makeover before they give you the boot," Elle muttered from the back of the room, kicking her foot out for extra emphasis.

"He was fine the way he was _Asole_!" Morgan growled in an acerbic tone. "What next? Are you going to change Garcia's wardrobe too?"

"Actually, I wouldn't mind if...you know...I weren't so flamboyant all the time. I actually like neutral colors and sometimes the patterns give me vertigo." She whispered hesitantly."Oh and I've run out of terms of endearment could you guys do something about that?"

"Not now Baby Girl," Morgan hugged her close to him before glaring at Asole again.

"Actually we do have some plans for you . You and your boy toy over there will have some more scenes. We're toying with the idea of playing up your relationship."

Garcia sighed in relief. "Well that doesn't sound so bad,"

"Oh," Mr. Asole started again. "And we'll be needing you to visit a new unit occasionally, spread your knowledge. Your likeable. Hopefully you'll be able to wrangle in some viewers."

Garcia bit her lip and shook her head in anger. Her dangly earrings shook with each movement. "I knew him being all nicey nice was "suspect behavior"!"

"At least you're the last surviving chica here. Take what you can get Garci!" Elle replied in a sing-song voice.

"Well, anyhow. Morgan, you'll continue to be put risky situations, annoy people by being brutally honest, and tackle unsubs, and flirt. Not much changing there for you." muttered quickly.

"Wait, is there anything else I can do? I hope to the high heavens that you won't continue to have me be the proverbial muscle for the team. I am useful for more than just assaulting unsubs, being temperamental, knocking down doors, and being a jackass albeit a truthful one."

Asole's eyelids fluttered with a bit of shock. "Huh, I didn't realize you knew words like "proverbial"...maybe we will focus more on your intellectual side."

"Are you kidding me?" Morgan bellowed.

"Settle down Morgan," Hotch responded icily.

"Ahh yes, and the stoic Hotch. Our goal is to get you to smile at least once so we can know that our dental plan is going to good use," Asole chuckled at his own joke.

Hotch clenched his fist and tugged at his tie in an effort to avoid strangling the robust man before him. "Is that all ?"

"Eh, we'll have some family focus on you, after all you are a single father now. We plan on not focusing on you quite as much this season, but we'll see. I know you lost your wife and damn near lost your mind for a bit, but do you think you can be a little less brooding? Just work on that." Asole winked at him before swiveling around in his chair to glimpse out the window at his ridiculously expensive BMW.

"How does he expect us to be ready for this season? He can't possibly think the fans are going to respond well to all of this?" Hotch muttered to Rossi.

"Ah and Rossi. We uhh...we don't have much planned for you yet so just, I don't know. Look alive." Asole slapped his hand on the table before rising. "It was good talking to you folks. I'll see you at the next meeting. Unfortunately, I have a dinner to attend, can't keep the truffles and caviar waiting!" he winked at the defeated bunch before heading for the door. "Oh, and Prentiss cut backs don't necessarily mean cut outs..not yet anyways. JJ, it was a pleasure working with ya, no worries we'll give you a couple of weeks to say your goodbyes and pack up your belongings." With that he shut the door behind him.

"Alright, whose down for drinks?" Elle questioned with eyes raised in anticipation. The others turned to face her, residual disdain and shock still lingering heavily in the air. She shrugged in response to the silence.

"Okaaay. Too soon?" She nodded her head at the pointed glares being shot in her direction. "Yeah. Too soon." She muttered to herself. "If you like Jayje Hailey, Todd, and I can help you pack later and you can come hang with us for a girl's night out?" She broke the silence again by continuing. "If you need the help that is!" JJ's eyes glistened with unshed tears. "If you're interested we usually get together every Wednesday!"

~o~

The End.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N**: Revamped an old one, decided to add a chapter inspired by changes for season 7. Still threw it together in a half hour or so...so please don't expect greatness. That being said I'm looking forward to the premiere like everybody else...I'm kinda ecstatic. It's kinda sad to see.

**Disclaimer:** Don't own 'em...I'd have done things a whole lot differently if I did.

~o~

Dr. Reid sluggishly stumbled into the conference room with a super,extra, grande mocha, crappafrappaccino with extra sugar in his hand. He nodded his head in acknowledgment of his colleagues and sat in one of the three empty chairs near Morgan.

"How nice of you to join us Dr. Reid," the balding plump man known as Mr. Asole said in a condescending tone.

"Not like I had much of a choice now is there, sir?" Reid snapped back with a sarcastic smirk, that somewhat startled his counterparts.

"A simple, I'm sorry for my tardiness would suffice Dr. Reid," Mr. Asole said through a forced smile, as he leaned forward in his chair and reconfirmed the time on his ridiculously expensive Rolex.

"Well sir, unless it's for the nature of my profession I refuse to lie about things. Also, I've asked you before that impromptu team gatherings don't work for me. I need more time to arrange transportation that will not only get me here in a timely fashion but will decrease my chances of being further delayed by unexpected mobs."

"Let me guess kid, nerd obsessed teeny-boppers with a bad case of Reid-fever?

"Actually no, not this time, though they can be pretty bad," Reid replied wide-eyed and shuddering at the thought.

"College co-eds equally attracted to you're intellect as they are to your physical hotness?" Garcia jumped in with a bright smile.

"No, actually. They're usually more well tamed...usually," he muttered as he tried to piece together the remnants of his skinny tie while avoiding a loose button on his now rumpled shirt.

"Then who was it kid?" Rossi questioned with part amusement, part annoyance.

"The worst of them all," Reid sighed as he paused to take a sip of his too sweet caffeinated beverage. "Middle-aged cougars with a gross overestimation of my physical capabilities...not that I'm complaining," he responded with a half smirk.

"Ahhh" the others replied in unison with nodded heads and smiles of their own, with the exception of Hotch who never smiles, and was still studying his young colleague because the sarcastic attitude Reid displayed wasn't lost on him.

Mr. Asole cleared his throat. "Well then, now that that's all settled, we should get down to business." He clasped his hands in front of him and stared down at the packets before him. "I'd first like to introduce you to my colleague Eva L. Bhetch. Ms. Bhetch has had her hands in all parts of the show and many of the shows for years. She's often heard but never seen, as you may know from the statements she had to make throughout last year." He signaled to a thin, dark haired woman beside him, whose face was unnaturally tight.

"Is she smiling at us?" Garcia whispered to Morgan.

"Can't tell Baby-girl."

"I thought she was younger than me?" Erin Strauss murmured to Rossi beside her.

"Too much plastic surgery has the reverse effect. I believe my third wife had the same problem...or maybe it was my fourth," Rossi's voice trailed off as he pondered.

"Anyways, let's get to discussing the upcoming season. We start in a few days and we must go over the changes," he sighed, promptly ignoring the loud groans from those around him. His attention was finally drawn to the opened laptop on the table. " I'm sorry, who is this?"

"Ohhh, umm, hello sir!" Ashley Seaver nervously greeted the plump man via Skype. "I-I'm so sorry, I was still on vacation and I had it arranged so I could still be read in on the meeting. Actually, sir, I had read something online and I wanted to ask you about it...of course, as soon as you-"

"Right, Amanda." Mr. Asole mused in a faraway tone, acknowledging the nudge Eva L. Bhetch was giving him with a curt nod.

"No, it's actually Ashley S-"

"Yeah, right, of course. Well, I suppose we'll start with this then. I'm sorry, Abigail..." he droned in an unapologetic voice as he astutely ignored Ashley's once again correcting him with her actual name.

"We're no longer in need of your services. We..." he paused to read the index cards full of notes. "We appreciate the time you invested and you will be misse- Seriously?" He abruptly turned to Eva L. Bhetch and motioned at the cards.

Eva and he continued to engage in a very heated discussion, or so they thought, seeing as Eva's lips never actually moved in the process. Mr. Asole gave Eva a suffering look before rolling his eyes and flashing a predatory grin.

"Look Allison, here's the thing...you were temporary. I can't say that you'll be terribly missed because honestly the fanbase for the most part never seemed to warm up to you. Sure you have some supporters out there, but it's mostly out of pity. They either can't stand you or are merely indifferent but we've yet to find a poll where you are even close to being considered a fan-favorite. Those are facts. Plus, honestly sweetheart what did you expect? They dropped you into this environment with a backstory with more holes in it then Swiss cheese, no adequate excuse as to why you were really there, and you were limited to roughly three lines an episode. You couldn't have possibly expected this to be long term! Besides, we have a quota, we-"

"They only find it acceptable to have three females to every four males, and it would be wrong to have an even amount of males and females on the show at once. Unthinkable, even!" A sarcastic retort came from the back of the room. Elle Greenaway was in the shadows leaning against the wall and counting the speckles in the ceiling tiles.

"B-but it's just me and Garcia!" Ashley stuttered as she wiped away tears.

"We'll get to that momentarily..." Mr. Asole waved an indifferent hand in Ashley's direction before turning to face Elle. "Ms. Greenaway is there a reason why you lurk about these meetings despite being long gone?"

"I'm a lurker_ Asole,_" Elle quipped with a sardonic smirk, fueled on by the approving snort coming from Morgan. "It's what I do."

"Fine. Whatever," Asole rolled his eyes ignoring the angry grunt coming from Eva L. Bhetch beside him. "The point is Alexandria-"

"ASHLEY!" Seaver interrupted through angry sobs. 

"Again...whatever. With the return of JJ and Prentiss-"

"Wait Prentiss and JJ are coming back?" Hotch inquired with a nervous lilt in his voice.

"-With the return of JJ and Prentiss...Ladies?" Asole gestured towards the door where both women walked in and took their seats. "We have in fact met are female quota and therefore are no longer in need of Angela's services."

"I have to admit, I didn't see that coming. Wait...are their anymore surprise returns?" Elle asked with a hopeful gleam in her eye.

Asole ignored Elle and turned to face the two women. "We are honored and privileged to have you back," he started in a monotone voice occasionally stealing a glance at the index cards Eva L. Bhetch pushed in his direction. "We did the fans, your team, and the show itself a disservice by behaving so rashly and firing you both. We underestimated the response your firings would have on fans because honestly girls...I just don't see where you all are all that imp-" he was cut off by Eva's sharp elbow slamming into his rib cage. He cleared his throat and continued. " It was a wrong choice and thankfully we have learned from our mistakes and prior misdeeds and will never abruptly fire a character without thought of the effects it could have, especially before developing the character to it's full potential."

"Wha-Seriously?" Ashley shrieked incredulously. "If you learned from your mistakes then why-"

"Amy, sweetheart, not right now-" Mr. Asole waved his hand dismissively. "Anyways, ladies your back by popular demand, that was an unforeseeable oversight on our part but despite fantastic ratings...we'll cater to our fans just this once," he said through a grimace as he felt Eva L. Bhetch elbow him again. "I mean, welcome back."

"Umm, may I be the one to point out that we do in fact have a soap opera clause in our contracts that strictly prohibit the raising of the dead?" Reid broke the uncomfortable silence. "Not that I'm not pleased to have you two back."

"Actually you aren't Dr. Reid," Asole said with a cruel smirk.

"What?"

"We'll get to that. So JJ, you're back as a profiler now, which means that we finally gave you something that makes you more useful. Isn't that great?" Asole clapped his hands together and ignored the insulted sigh coming from JJ and the agitated growl coming from Rossi.

"Things won't be easy for you though, darling. The others won't take too kindly to you're leaving out the minor detail of Emily still being alive. I'm sure most of them will forgive you quickly though," he shot a doubtful look in Reid and Morgan's direction before continuing. "But on the plus we will give you some more backstory and we will focus on your character a lot more and even bring in that sweet little son of yours and that country bumpkin fella you seem to love."

"Will. His name is Will," JJ all but sneered as Hotch patted her arm to calm her.

"Uh huh. Sure, doll."

"So again, how is Emily going to be back without violating the soap opera clause?" Reid raised a brow suspiciously. "And am I wrong, which let's be honest the probability of me being wrong about anything is slim, but am I wrong in considering that maybe you guys did this firing-rehiring stunt to boost ratings?"

Eva L. Bhetch leaned in closely and seemed to have been hissing something in Mr. Asole's ear. "Eva, love, Dr. Reid's the resident genius, it's in his nature to question such things and we're required to engage and deal with it, okay?" he whispered through a forced smile as he nodded in Reid's direction.

"Will she have a different name?" Reid inquired.

"Well...no she'll still be Emily Prentiss-"

"Will she no longer be working for the BAU?"

"Well no...see she will be still with the BAU-"

"Is Doyle dead, therefore making it safe for her to come out of hiding?"

"Well..not exactly, see Doyle is still alive-"

"Then I repeat, how is it plausible for a presumed dead agent to come out of whatever form of protection she was placed under, and still work for the agency using her given name, and the man responsible for her going into hiding, not to mention the man responsible for subsequently destroying the bond between all of us characters, is still out there? How is it probable that this doesn't defy the soap opera clause not to mention the loose grasp we have on reality as a show?" Reid glared at Mr. Asole, challenge gleaming in his hazel eyes.

"Err...I believe someone inquired about Dr. Reid's change in attitude?" Asole's face reddened under the intensity of the young doctor's glare. He looked down to his notes, "Dr. Reid and Agent Morgan will have the biggest problems with this development. Reid will be the most affected however, there will be an undeniable tension between him and at least three of the characters involved in this fiasco. We're also planning on making Reid a bit more bad-ass this year...err, as you can see, he'll do quite well with this development in his character."

Reid merely rolled his eyes and finished off the rest of his sugar coffee concoction. The others looked at him with sympathy and horror, clearly displeased with the direction he would be forced to take with his character.

"Huh, I kinda like it," Elle quipped from the other side of the room. "Knew you had a little bad-ass 'tude in there somewhere kid," she smirked at him and he smiled back.

"Wait...and I'm the other person who will take issue with the reappearance of JJ and Emily?" Morgan inquired from his spot next to Garcia. "Do we have to do this again? Let me guess, I'll be the angry one ? Don't get me wrong, I'm angry...I'm very angry, not to mention feeling a bit betrayed, but I resent the fact that you continue to perpetuate this underlying stereotype of African-American men as being impulsive or angry, through my character. I'm quite tired of being the one to always challenge everything...have you seen the polls, man? I end up coming across as some sort of bad guy practically every time I open my mouth! If it weren't for the fact that I flirted so much with Garcia, and play the big brother role with Reid, and knocked down doors and tackled people...I'd be seriously concerned that none of the fans wouldn't like me!" He finished his tirade barely above a whisper and smiled as Garcia patted him reassuringly on the arm and kissed him on the cheek.

"Sorry Der, I think they dumped some of my angry Latina off on you when I left," Elle whispered from the back.

"Huh...'perpetuate' I keep forgetting that you're actually smart too. So often we cast the all brawn no brain that I sometimes lump you in the category with the rest of 'em," Asole said smoothly.

"Are you kidding me, man?" Morgan bellowed, Hotch glared at Asole with his trademark stoic look and Garcia let out a frustrated grunt.

"Agent Morgan, I know your little hold out that came dangerously close to impacting the season,was in part due to the way in which we handle your character," he paused as he watched Morgan squirm under the reminder of contract negotiations. "But we do appreciate your character, I mean you fall under the token minority clause so we-" he was interrupted by Eva hissing at him. "Sorry, we do note your concerns about your character. We also have a bit of reflection in store for you as you contemplate an offer to run your own team in NYC."

"No...no, no, no! I can't lose anymore of my babies! I can't lose my stud muffin!" Garcia shrieked.

"Ahh, yes Ms. Penelope. No worries my dear, I doubt anything will come of it. For you, we plan on bringing up that lovely boyfriend of yours. Progression in the relationship is necessary. We'll also continue to use you to your full potential as technical analyst and you'll also be briefing the team on the cases. We will try to uphold your request for more terms of endearment for Agent Morgan, and of course we'll continue to use the relationship between you to as the light relief in an otherwise dark and angsty show. While your wardrobe won't be any less flamboyant we will work on color coordination. And no worries, my dear, we won't be lending you out to any sister shows. My God, that was a travesty. "Asole shuddered and Eva L. Bhetch nodded her head minutely in agreement.

"Umm, okay, I suppose that isn't so bad. I won't have to choose sides amongst my chickadees though will I? I can't bare having us all not getting along!"

"I see...," Asole blinked before turning his chair. "Moving on. David Rossi."

"Let me guess, you want me to 'look alive'" he said sarcastically with a smirk and air quotes to punctuate it.

"Actually, we're looking forward to you looking as if you've seen a ghost," Asole droned.

"I beg your pardon?"

"We're bringing in one of you're ex wives. We appreciate the mentor role you took on last season and the doting uncle role you took on with little Jack...it was a beautiful sight. We want to spice things up though this season, so yeah...I'm bringing in an ex-wife."

"Isn't having Erin there enough?" Rossi queried. "No offense, dear," he offered to Erin Strauss beside him as he gave her a pat on the hand.

"None taken," she quietly responded back.

"Ha! Um, no...no, that isn't enough. We haven't decided which of your ex wives we're bringing in but the more awkward the situation the better," Mr. Asole answered with a smirk. "Other than that...yes, by all means Rossi, look alive... hell, I'll settle for awake."

"And how about myself?" Hotch questioned cautiously, his face still stoic.

"Ahh yes, Hotch. Really had us on the edge of our seats there didn't you?"

Hotch merely shrugged in response.

"No worries, we'll try not to hold that against you," Asole said with narrowed eyes. "For you things will be complicated. We have understandable friction amongst your team that will affect the way the team interacts and functions. As the leader you will undoubtedly face the brunt of the wrath from your team and from superiors regarding the overall effectiveness. In fact there will be a hearing."

Emily gasped in the background and JJ gave her a worried look and grabbed her hand.

"We'll also work in some more of those senior bromance moments between you and Rossi. Might I applaud you for smiling at least twice last season? I expect to see at least one worked in this season. It's a pity that we can't see the extent of the dental plan we work so hard to give you." Asole smirked. "You and Agent Morgan will have your fair share of friction, same goes for Dr. Reid. Also there will be something we'll need to work out with you and Erin."

"Am I going to be gone?" Strauss asked nervously.

"Uh, that's need to know right now Erica-"

"Erin!" Rossi corrected with a growl.

"-and right now you don't need to know it."

"Is this part of the quota everyone keeps talking about?" Ashley asked with a sniffle.

"Um, Ashley is it? I'll discuss the workings of this show with you...I have a special place and everything..." Elle grabbed the laptop that Ashley was appearing on and held it solidly in her hands.

"Great," Erin huffed. " so first you insist on making me a...a-"

"Bitch?" Rossi offered.

"Yes, a...bitch, and then you imply that I'm somehow ill, and now you're saying that you refuse to tell me whether or not my job may be in jeopardy this season?"

"Uh..yeah, that pretty much sums it up Tootsie." Asole replied in a bored tone as he checked his watch again and stared out the window.

"Is there anything else we need to know about this upcoming season, sir?" Hotch asked sternly.

Mr. Asole and Eva L. Bhetch went back and forth whispering with one another for a brief moments, exchanging glances with one another and eying each of the team members briefly, before Mr. Asole cleared his throat nodded his head in affirmation at Eva L. Bhetch and faced the team.

" Emily will return, not necessarily to open arms. JJ is back and will be more useful than she ever was before, she too will face a bit of backlash from her colleagues. Rossi's ex will complicate matters. Hotch will be the troubled leader. Dr. Reid will become darker and more distant than ever. Morgan will be angry, tackle things, and flirt. Garcia will be happy go lucky and colorful, Anna won't be returning at all...maybe we'll explain that maybe we won't we haven't quite decided but surely no one will notice. Erica may or may not still oversee the BAU and be the bitch. And in general the team as we know it will never be the same." Mr. Asole clapped his hands together excitedly and exchanged a glance with Eva L. Bhetch. "I'm excited! So is Eva, though it's kind of hard to tell sometimes," he frowned at the plastic looking face of his colleague. " It's the season of characters folks! The season for all the little fans out there to connect with you all! You should be happy...you all will be getting just as much attention as those unsubs you chase after! I've been dying to see the unraveling of the BAU! I'm practically gleeful!"

He ignored the death glares being shot in his direction, as Garcia softly sniffled back tears, Morgan all but growled, Reid clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes, Rossi did his best "Godfather glare", JJ and Emily shifted uncomfortably, Ashley hiccuped, Elle smirked, Erin smiled sadly, and Hotch pinned Mr. Asole and his companion with his best stoic glare.

"Well, Eva and I have to go. We have a slue of new shows to screw...I mean work with." He shot a glance at Eva. "Let's see next on are itinerary...we must talk to Shane about that NCIS LA show...he goes way overbudget with those damn explosions." He clapped his hands together and hoisted himself from the chair, adjusting his Tom Ford suit. "What does he think, we're made from money?" He made his way to the door with his botox mannequin, companion beside him.

"Well, that was fun," Elle said sarcastically. "What?" she responded to the looks the others shot in her direction. "As if I'm the only one thinking that."

The tension in the room was palpable as the others begin leafing through their scripts.

"Guess that rules out dinner and drinks." Elle sighed and looked at the still sniffling Ashley Seaver on the laptop screen she was holding. "Ashley, right?"

"Yes!" Ashley all but hiccuped.

"Nice to meet you Ashley. It sucks that they broke the news to you while you were on vacation like that..."

"They confirmed the news. I found out two hours ago on Twitter."

"Damn, that sucks. They've gotten more ruthless over the years," Elle said with a shrug. "Anyways, I'm Elle Greenaway. I'm sure you never heard of me before, because God forbid anyone mentions me anymore,"she said with a snort, as she rose from her seat and carried the laptop with her towards the door.

"There's a group of us girls that get together every Wednesday night roughly around 9 or so for drinks. I'll introduce you to them all. There's Hailey Hotchner and Jordan Todd, and occasionally we hang out with Diana Reid...when she isn't off singing show-tunes. It'll be fun." Elle smirked at the fresh faced blonde on the screen before turning around to face Erin Strauss. "Oh, and as for you chica, I'll extend you an invitation...you know, just in case," she whispered before shutting the door behind her.


End file.
